Author: Emma-Sophie Gerrish

A Somerset “Pledge Against Preventable Plastics” has been launched to identify some of the simple practical steps we can all take to cut waste and recycle more. The pledge coincides with the annual World Environment Day, whose theme this year is “Beat Plastic Pollution” with the slogan “If you can’t reuse it, refuse it”. The…

The biggest change to plastics recycling in Somerset in almost a decade is underway at the county’s 16 recycling sites. Somerset Waste Partnership (SWP) has announced that every recycling site is now taking plastic food pots, tubs and trays – the rigid plastic containers for yoghurt, margarine, fruit and other foods – as well as…

The waste of food that has travelled around the world to reach our plates has sent Somerset schoolchildren bananas. Pupils at St Gilda’s Catholic Primary School in Mary Street, Yeovil, were among the first to join the Schools Against Waste programme backed by the six council partners in Somerset Waste Partnership (SWP). Schools Against Waste…

Easter will bring waste day changes for every household in Somerset. Pick-ups due on Good Friday 30 March will take place on Saturday 31 March, while no collections on Easter Monday 2 April mean all that week’s kerbside services are one day later, including Friday pick-ups on Saturday 7 April. All recycling sites remain on…

Somerset families are being urged to get rid of all recycling and rubbish before Christmas to avoid the risk of bad weather and collection disruption during peak waste demand. And the advice for after Christmas is to spread the waste load over time or take it to a recycling site to avoid overloading hard-pressed crews…

Christmas is Somerset’s most wasteful time, when much that should be recycled – including thousands of turkey carcasses – gets buried in landfill. But it is also a great opportunity for you and all your family to waste less, recycle more and save plenty of money. Here is how to get the best from Christmas…

Upgrading Somerset’s waste services is moving ahead fast to take even more materials in kerbside recycling and generate electricity from the smaller amounts of rubbish left over. The changes will involve aligning three multi-million pound contracts: for waste collection, rubbish disposal, and a new fleet of refuse and recycling vehicles, all of which currently begin…

The latest challenge for Somerset shoppers trying to waste less while holding onto their cash is this weekend’s US-inspired marketing heave between Black Friday and Cyber Monday – 24 to 27 November. With sprawling weeks of claimed discounts and short-term deals, it all encourages impulse buying that can all too easily lead to consumers spending…

With every can, bottle and apple core they recycle this week, Somerset residents are marking a significant double anniversary. It is two decades since all six Somerset councils – five districts and the county – formally agreed to jointly drive forward an environmental agenda to help households waste less, recycle more and save money. And…

A Somerset man who fly-tipped waste over his garden fence into a back lane spent a night in jail for not dealing with a fine for the crime – and left court with a bill for £280. Unemployed father-of-two Marcus Jones, aged 25, was arrested and held overnight after he failed to appear for a…